And so I voted down the pity, and I picked up an attitude of adventure. What can I do with a cold, a little gas in the car, and a spark of hope? Well, first, I met some of my family in Ashland where my brother and his
daughter were participating in the Chalk Walk. With a donation of five bucks that went to a worthy cause, folks were decorating the sidewalk with colors and imagination. It was brilliant! It was fun! It was child-like and full of magic!
From there we visited a little market that is celebrating 100 years in business. 100 years!! How cool is that? And in today’s economy! There were bouquets of flowers all over that store. People all over Ashland were honoring this event… and I hear tonight there is going to be a big party! I personally found this to be precious… the whole
thing!
Next, I went to the Ace Hardware store in Ashland. I heard on a commercial earlier this week that today they were giving away a free quart of paint to customers. Really? Free? And so, I visited their store, thinking that there must be a catch. Probably you have to buy a gallon to get a quart. Probably it’s some brown or grey color that nobody wants to buy. But guess what! There was no gimmick! I was invited to choose whatever color I wanted and take a quart of it home for free! That made me happy… really happy! I plan on zapping a fraction
of my kitchen with this gorgeous, ripe red!!
My parents met me for lunch, and my Mom bought me the most flavorful meal. Oh, I loved every bite!! Orange lentil salad, pineapple, waldorff salad, tuna, fresh greens. Each bite nourished me level upon level. Thanks,
Mom!
But once I parted ways with my family, I felt that darn tug of sadness return. What is up with that today? So, I came home, snuggled a bit with my dog, Chloe, and then decided to do that blasted run to the dump. Hey, why feel sad when you can take out the trash? No, it’s still not my favorite job, but it was something to do… something that needed to be done… and I have done this often enough to know that there is always a reward in this venture. And sure enough, once we got the stinky job done, we stopped all along the way home for fresh, roadside wildflowers. Oh, look Chloe! Yellow ones! Smell, Chloe… honeysuckle!! Oh… and the simple beauty of purple clover and bachelor’s buttons! And guess what… no charge!
Tonight, there will be the Super Moon to look forward to. It will stand witness to this world and all of our roaming. It will look down upon up as we fix our eyes heavenward, and somehow life will be okay. We may not realize it every moment. We may not remember to seek the good. We may not be able to trust that Divine love longs to set us free from every earthly burden. But the moon is going to rise and the flowers are blooming, and from where we are… from right where we are… we are the keepers of the palace. “Lift up your hearts. We lift them to the Lord. It is right to give the Lord thanks and praise.”